Power-transmission mechanism.



1. w. HEGELER & e. HOLMES. I POWER TRANSMISSION MECHANISM.

5 APPLICATION FILED APR l8. l9l2. 1,176,290. Patented Mar.21,1916.

5 SHEETS-SHEET I.

woo-E arm J. W. HEGELER & (3.

POWER TRANSMISSION MECHANISM.

HOLMES-.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 18, I912.

Patented Mar. 21, 1916 5 SHEETS-SHEET 2 ammuliod (Zelda/s W/{gefsn Patented Mar. 21, 1916 5 SHEETS SHEET 3.

J. W. HEGELER 84 G- HOLMES.

POWER TRANSMISSION MECHANISM.

APPLICATlON HLED APR. 18, I912. 1,176,290.

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Wihwawo J. W. HEGELER & G. HOLMES.

POWER TRANSMISSION MECHANISM.

APPLICATION FILED APR. I8. I912v 1,176,290. Patented Mar. 21,1910.

5 SHEETS*SHEEI 4.

s s Elm mankind no F J. W HEGELER & G. HOLMES.

POWER TRANSMISSION MECHANISM APPLICAUON FIL ED APR. 18, 1912.

Patented M31. 21, 1936 14s WHeyekf. GmnZ/ ames.

UNITED s'ra'rns PATENT OFFICE.

JULIUS W. HEGELER AND GRANT HOLMES, OF DANVILLE, ILLINOIS.

POWER-TRANSMISSION MECHANISM.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 21 1916.,

Application filed April 18, 1912. Serial No. 691,675.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we. JULrUs W. Hnosnnn and GRANT HOLMES, citizens of the United States, residing at-Danville, in the county of Vermilion and Stateof Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Power-Transmission Mechanism, of which the following is a specification, reference being 'had therein to the accom panying drawing.

This invention relates to power transmission mechanism and more particularly to mechanism for transmitting power between belts, cables, chainsor other endless flexible members and a plurality of sheaves or drums.

The device is especially adapted. for use withendless belt conveyers.

In a multiple pulley drive mechanism the increasing tension to which the belt is subjected in passing over' the successive pul leys, does, through the elasticity of the belt, slightly vary its speed at different points. This necessitates, in order that each pulley shall transmit power to the belt, a different peripheral speed for each of the pulleys.

In any series containingmore than two drivers, the carrying surface-of the belt comes in contact with one or more of the drivers. This \vili, especially if the mate rial conveyed is at all sticky, result in building up the surfaces of those pulleys in contact with the carrying side of the belt, thereby altering the peripheries of such pulleys, and .at constant rotative speed changing their peripheral speeds.

In a multiple pulley drive each driver should, in order that it may exert its maximum traction on. the belt, be supplied with power in accordance with theamount of traction which the relative location of the driver in the series permits it to impart to the belt. I

It is therefore one object of this invention to provide a driving mechanism which shall automatically compensate for the different working conditions of each of the drivers, running sbme faster and others slower, un til the required relative peripheral speeds are secured.

It is also an object of this.iuverition to divide the load among the several driving pulleys unequally but in proportion to the load which each can transmit and to pro ride for this purpose a suitable method of transmitting power ,to these pulleys from a. common source.

In the accompanying drawings, in which this invention is shown in connection with an endless" belt conveyor, Figure 1 is a side elevation of a head drive for a conveyer; F g. 2 is a top plan view of the head drive; Fig. 3 is a vertical section of the compensating gearing used between the source of power and the driving pulleys; Fig. 4 is a similar view taken parallel to the axis thereof; ig. 5 is a vertical section of the compensating gearing employed between the second and third driving pulleys taken transversely to the axis thereof; Fig. 6 is a similar view taken parallel to the axis; Fig. 7 is a side elevation of a heel drive showing the invention applied thereto; and Fig. 8 is a top plan view of the same,

In these drawings webave, for the purpose of illustration, shown the invention applied to a belt conveyer, both to a head drive and to a .heel drive.' ,In the former case there are three driving pulleys and in the latter case two, shown in the drawings. In both cases the conveyor is indicated as a flexible belt, smooth on both sides, but none of these conditions is essential to, or a limitation of the application of this device. It is manifest that a chain, cable or other endless flexible member 'driven by means'of traction from a sheave or drum could be operated in a similar way by means ofthis device.

Referring to the head drive as illustrated in Figs 1 to 6, the conveyer belt 1 is supported on a series of rollers 2 and 3 mounted on a conveyer frame 4, the upper end of which is supported by a frame 5. The frame 5 has one side inclined as indicated at 7, to form a support for a plurality of driving pulleys, which in the present instance are three in number. These pulleys, which are indicated by the reference numerals 8, 9 and' 10, are mounted, respectively,.on shafts 11, 12 and 13, journaled in bearings 14 on the frame. In the particular arrangement here illustrated the uppermost pulley, 8, is mounted at the extreme upper end of the conveyer and -is the first pulley to be engaged by the belt. The belt passes about the pulley 8, beneath the pulley 10, without'engaging the same, and about the pulley 9, thence downward between the pulleys 9 and 10, about the pulley 10, thence above the-pulley 9 and the next larger portion and the pulley the smallest portion of the load. By so applying the power the successive pulleys are caused to tighten the belt about the preceding pulleys, that is, the pulley 10 will not only drive its share of the load, but, in so doing, will tighten the beltabout the pulley 9, thereby giving the latter pulley the necessary amount of adhesion to enable it to drive its share of the load. Likewise, the pulley 9 will tighten the belt. about the pulley 8 to give this pulley the proper adhesion to enable it to drive its share of the load. In the present instance the power for driving the several pulleys is derived from a single source, which is here indicated as a motor connected by means of a belt 16 with a compensating pulley 17. This compensating pulley is of such a character as to divide the power into two unequal quantities, and, in the form here shown, has a smooth face or periphery 18 constituting the driving memher for the gearing and connected by means of side members 19 with hubs 20 rotatably mounted on sleeves 21 and 22 which form the hubs of gears 23 and 24, respectively.

Two pairs of pinions 25 and 26 are mounted on shafts 27 arranged on opposite sides of the axis of the pulley 18. The smaller pinions 25 mesh directly with the larger ear 23, while the larger -pinions, 26, are iconnected through intermediate pinions 28 with the smaller gear 24. The hub 22 of the gear 24: is keyed to a shaft 29 journaled in bearings 30 on the frame 5 and the hub 21 of; the gear-23 extends beyond the adjacent side member of the gear and is provided on itr'r, outer end with a pinion 31. The ratio oftlie pinions and gears is such that the power applied to the driving member or pulley 18 is divided and transmitted in unequal quanti'ties to the pinion 31 and to the shaft 29, the pinion 31 receiving the larger portion of the power. gear 32 carried by a shaft 33 journaled in bearings 34 on the frame5 and having a pinion 35 which. meshes with a gear 36 carried by the shaft 11' of the pulley 8, thus transmitting powerto the driving pulley 8, and causing the same to drive its due proportion of the gross-load. The power applied to the shaft 9 is transmitted through the medium of a pi ion 37 to a compensating gearing 38 mounted on a shaft 39 carried by bearings 40 on the frame 5. This compensating gearing is similar in its main features of constructioirto the compensating pulley 17, differing therefrom in two respects only, the first being that its peripheral The pinion 31 meshes with a driving member is in the form of a gear instead of a pulley, and second, that the ratio of the internal gears is diiierent from the ratio of the gears in the pulley 17. The larger portion of the power is transmitted from a quill pinion 42, corresponding to the pinion 31 of the gear 17, to a gear 43 carried by the shaft 12 of the lower driving pulley 9, while the smaller portion of the power is transmitted through a pinion 44 on the shaft 39 to a gear 45 on the shaft 13 of tlfie pulley 10. Obviously,'however, the ratio 0 t driven by the various driving pulleys can be varied at will.

The arrangement here described is a typical one and the ratio of the pulls determined by the sizes of the various gears and pinions preferably will be made such that under normal conditions the several drivers will slip on the belt at the same time. That is, when any onepulley is loaded to the maximum each other one of the'series will also be loaded to its maximum. The compensating gearings not only divide the load among the several pulleys in correct proportion but e gears and the percentage of the load they also constitute flexible connections between the several driving pulleys and between the driving pullevs and thesource of power which will permit the mechanism to accommodate itself to any variation in the diameter of the driving pulleys due to the building up of the same or to any other cause. They also permit the peripheral speeds of the different pulleys to varyto compensate for stretch of the belt and for any deviation 'of natural peripheral speeds from the speeds actually required. While we have shown one form of compensating gearing it will, of course, be understood that 5 This latter is not here shown, as it is of I ordinary construction. The driving mechanism is supported on a suitable frame 54 a short distance from the heel ofthe co-nveyer and comprises, in the present instance, two.

driving pulleys 55 and 56. The belt as it comes from the head pulley passes over an idler or guide pulley 57, thence about the primary driving pulley 55 and then about the secondary driving pulley 56 and from the secondary driving pulley to the heel pulley 53. The arrangement of the two pul leys of the drive'is such that the belt will be in contact with a relatively large portion of the surface of each of the pulleys. The pulleys are drivm from any suitable source of power which, in the present instance, applied to the pulleys by means of a belt pu l- ,lry 5h mounted on a shaft oil journalcd on the. irauic 51;, The power transmitted l'rom tlushaft 5'.) to the pulleys through the medium of couu icnsating gearing, as indi- (rated at no. The cha actor of this compensatin; ,l'tllllllg' and the manner of its con nection with tho shalt 5i) and the driving pulleys .35 and so is similar to that above do scrilaal in connection with the head lrivc. lhc compensating gearing will autoumlh rally adjust the speeds of the lwo pulley cause car-ll to rat"); its proper sharc of tho i l and to txcri the rn'oper ti rticu upon the ball. Further, when there a. trial; envy on the part of the secondary pulley 5G to slow up because ol? the placing of a load on the conveyor this slowing up of the one pulley will result in the primary pulley 55.

In the compensating gearing lb, the ratio of the rs determines the proportion of load which will be transmitted to the pinion ill and to the gear 32, res iicctivel ,.and these ratios are to be selected as nearly as may be to make the load on each proportionate to the maximum power which the respective pulleys are in position to transmit to the bolt. The various dri\ inn: pulloys may be oi the same or of slightly different diameters; it the peripheral speeds of the pulleys have been selected so as exactly to compensate for the stretch of the belt, the pinions 25 and 26 will not rotate relatively to the outer casing \vhcn the device is in service, but will reaolve with pulley 18 as it formed as an. in 'tcgral part thereof. 11', however. belt ten sion or other conditions requires a. variation oi peripheral speed of the driving pulleys pinions BS 6 Will rotate on their axes as well as revolvc about the axis of '19, and by their rotation will transmit relatively ditlcrcat speeds to 1-57 and 3:2.

The opcration ot the invention as applied to both the head and the heel drives will rcadily be understood from the foregoing descriptions thereof and it will be apparent that the application oi the compensating gearing t a inultiplepullsy driving me l anism fully attains the several objects here, 1

forth While we have shown and describcd our invention as embodied in driving memanism tor a belt conveyor it will be undcrstood that the iu 'ention applicable to various power transmission mechanisms comprising an cmllcss flexible member and caves or drun'a-i cooperating; therewith and is not to be cimsl'rued as limited to any pain t zi'ular kind of (lll lllQ mecl'ianism or to driving mechanism distinguished from driven mechanism. We, thcreiorc, wish it acceleration of the to he understood that we do not desire tube limited to the details of construction shown and described, for obvious modifications will occur to a person skilled in the art.

Having thus fully described our invention, what we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters latei1t,vis:

1. The combination, with a plurality of driving; pulleys mounted nparallel shafts, an endless lleaiblc member adjusted to said pulleys, and a source of power, of means for transmitting power from said source of power to said wulleys, said means comprising nilllllkillr till" :u'ing lnteruoscd between said source power and the respective Z. he combination. with an endless belt, a plnraliiyo a: ile for the same, and a sraxrcc of power. of a driving connection between said source of power and said pulleys comprising compensating gearing between said source of power and all of said pulleys and other compensating gearing between two of said pulleys.

ll. The combination, with a plurality of driving pulleys, and an endless flexible member adjusted to said pulleys, of means for driving said pulleys, constructed and arranged for distributing the rotative cllort unequally to said pulleys, and to permit said pulleys to rotate at different speeds and automatically to adjust the relative speeds of said pulleys so that each will develop its full designed efficiency.

l. The combination, with an endless flexible member, and a. plurality of driving pulleys for the same, of power mechanism for driving said pulleys, and means to cause said power mechanism to exert dili'crcnt rotatiyc efforts on litlcrent driving pulleys.

5. The combination, with an endless belt, a plurality of pulleys for the same, and a source of power, of a driving connection bctween said source of prover and said pulleys, said connectiw comprising differential gear- 1 J iJCtWQL'll said source of power and all of said pulleys and other differential gearing between twoot said pulleys.

6) The combination, with an endless belt,

a plurality of milleys for the same, and a source of power, of a driving connection belvvcun said source of power and said pulleys, said connection con'lprising differential compensating gearing between said source of power and all of said pulleys, and other differential compensating gearing between two Oi said pulleys.

'1, The combination, with an endless belt, and a plurality of driving pulleys for the same, of power mechanism for driving said pulleys, and means to cause said power mechanism to exert dillerent rotative efforts on dill'crcnt driving pulleys. I

The combination, with a plurality of drlving pulleys mounted on parallel shafts,

an endless beltadjusted to said pulleys, and

a source of power, of means fortransmitting power unequally from said source of power to said pulleys, said means comprising differential compensating gearing interposed between said source of power and the respective shafts. 

